Just Hiking
by Cameron886699
Summary: “We're just going hiking.” Holly and Artemis are about to go hiking. But Hiking isn't all they do. A/H, Post TTP
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One.

Holly Short was flying low across the vast expanse of water in front of her, not noticing the usual thrill she got from above ground flying as she normally did.

Instead, her mind was wandering over to the events that had taken place over the past few weeks.

She had been staying at Fowl Manor every few days, as there was nothing going majorly wrong in the Lower Elements that urgently needed her attention, no goblin rebellions or megalomaniac pixie trying to overthrow the world, and Artemis's parents went on a resort holiday with the twins for a bit over a month.

And as Holly had put it, they never got to hang out.

So recently, they had been doing all sorts of activities together, sometimes accompanied by Mulch Diggums, the kleptomaniac dwarf, and always accompanied by Butler.

But not today.

Today it was just Artemis and Holly, going on a hike in the hills, only a few miles from Fowl Manor.

Normally, Artemis would be completely inept at any activity requiring a minimal amount of physical strain, but recently, during his ventures with Holly, he had been exercising a lot more than just his brain, and had even spent some time on the ridiculous home gymnasium he had purchased after rescuing his father from the Russian Mafia.

Sure, he wouldn't be winning any athletics tournaments any time soon, but he was quite defiantly much more capable of doing more "outdoorsy" stuff.

His ever-pale skin was even getting a touch of colour in it from the time he'd been spending outdoors recently.

Holly smiled through her visor.

_Now there is a Mud Boy who is changing._

What suddenly came to mind, was their feelings for each other.

Artemis loved her, and she loved him back, but that was just how close they were, it could be nothing serious, right?

But even at that, an elf being so close to a Mud-Man, the council would never approve, and in fact, they didn't.

Had it not been from the huge influence from the commander, Trouble Kelp, the council would have suspended Holly's above-ground license.

But no need to think about that now, Holly had a Mud-Boy to see.

About half an hour ago, Artemis had sent Holly an e-mail, asking if she would come hiking with him, not far from Fowl Manor.

She was near Finland when she received it, once again on Kraken watch, the same one that had exploded recently, and no sooner had she read it had she patched through to Foaly the centaur, asking permission to take the rest of the day leave.

Of course, she really had to ask commander Kelp, but Foaly insisted that she ask him and he would pass on the message.

He took it as a chance to gloat, or simply sing, "Love is in the Air".

"…In the rising of the sun, _love is in the air_…"Foaly sang, seemingly to himself.

"Oh shut up you." Holly retorted, not planning to admit any time soon that she probably did have those feelings for him.

"We're just going hiking"

"Surely it can't be that big."

"Huh?"

"Nothing. So are you staying the night again?"

The image in Holly's visor couldn't hide the big grin on his face.

"I don't know yet, I'll wait and see when I get there."

"You are incredibly lucky that you have someone like Trouble Kelp as commander, I don't think anyone else would ever let you go above-ground for "bonding time" imagine what Sool would have said if you asked him. Well you just remember to stay safe."

"Again, we're just going hiking."

"Exactly." Said the centaur, grinning hugely, before cutting the line a second later.

Holly scowled at the place where Foaly image had been only a moment ago, and decided not to think about and continue on with her journey.

When she arrived at the Manor, Artemis Fowl was standing at the front door, looking quite smug in his suit, his bodyguard, Butler standing behind him.

"Good to see you again Arty." She said, giving him a brief, but close embrace.

"No hugs for me then?" Put in the huge manservant.

"Of course." She said, wrapping her small arms around Butler's huge neck.

"Surely you won't be wearing that while hiking." Said Holly, referring to Artemis's finely tailored suit.

"Of course not, I plan on putting on a change of clothes in a moment. Shall we go inside?"

Artemis led Holly to the gest bedroom, which had recently become Holly's temporary room, complete with a wardrobe full of elf-sized clothing.

"You may wish to change into something more suitable also." Artemis said, eyeing her LEP uniform.

Agreeing, she went into her room to change into some human clothes.

When she emerged, wearing a pair of cargo pants, and a simple green top, looking incredibly pretty, she found Butler giving Artemis strict instructions to avoid any people when possible and that if he didn't give him updates every ten minutes, he would come and find them.

Artemis turned to Holly, momentarily blown away by her stunning elfish features, but quickly regained his usual smug look.

"Shall we get going then?" He asked Holly, for he had also changed into something more suitable, a pair on sneakers, some shorts, and a dark blue shirt, sporting the Nike "Swoosh" upon it.

"Ready when you are." She replied.

And with that they embarked for the journey that held more for them than either could have guessed.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

"Oh come on Artemis, we haven't been far at all."

"Just…give me…one second…" He replied, bent down, panting with his hands on his knees.

Holly rolled her eyes. Sometimes Mud Boys never change.

"It was your idea to go hiking in the first place. Don't tell me you've never been before."

Artemis shrugged. "I didn't imagine it would be much different to bush walking I had done with my parents."

"Big difference Arty, one's flat, one's up"

Artemis felt the twinge he always got when Holly used his mother's pet name for him.

"Did you by any chance bring along any water?"

Holly rolled her eyes once again.

"Now why would I go on a hike and not bring any water along?" She answered, reaching inside the Grav-Pack that Foaly had issued among the LEP, remembering what the centaur had told her when giving her a sneak peak.

"This beauty not only makes everything inside it lighter, using the same technology as the Moon belt and Floaters, but also either makes the contents smaller or the inside bigger" He had told her, marvelling at his own genius.

"So which is it?" She had asked.

"Hmm?"

"Inside bigger or contents smaller?"

For a moment, the centaur looked genuinely puzzled, not something you would normally see.

"I think I'll get back to you on that one."

Holly smiled, as she gave Artemis his water.

He took three gulps before he managed to compose himself to his regular self. "Shall we move on then?"

They continued on for another hour, before stopping in an open mossy patch atop a small hill for lunch.

Artemis was hungrily rummaging through Holly's Grav-Pack, when he heard a cry come from where Holly had momentarily wandered off.

Immediately alert, Artemis got up and ran over to the cry as quickly as his legs would take him, to find her lying on her front on the edge of the hill, with a stunned look on her face.

"What happened?"

"I'm…not sure… Something just whizzed past me, knocking me over, I didn't have a chance to see it."

Artemis helped up his fallen companion and she brushed the excess twigs and dirt off her front.

"Do you know which way it went?"

"I think it was going in the direction of that open space at the bottom of the hill."

They both moved to the edge of the hill, to see if whatever the strange thing that knocked over Holly was down in the open area.

Whilst observing from their vantage point, atop the hill, Artemis frowned, and leant a fraction further forward.

But gravity, seeing its chance, grabbed hold of his slight frame, pulling him to the ground.

Caught entirely by surprise, Artemis flung out and grabbed a hold his elvin companion in an attempt to steady his self.

If he was hoping that Holly's small fairy body could hold up his weight, he was hoping in vain, and only succeeded in pulling her down the hill with him.

Holly uttered a short squeal as she was yanked into an involuntary descent to the bottom.

Luckily for them, the slope also had a large moss build-up, so the unexpected adventure was softened and was practically painless.

After the initial shock wore off, Artemis found that he was actually quite enjoying himself, rolling uncontrollably down a slope with his closest friend.

_This must be one of those moments I missed out on as a child._ Artemis thought. _The ones that adults are continually saying to cherish forever._

As much fun as it may have been, the slope eventually came to an end, and Holly and Artemis rolled onto the more solid gravel that made up the ground under the hill, panting, and both laughing their heads off.

After a few minutes of genuine joy from Artemis, Holly rolled over and held herself up over Artemis' upper body.

"What's this?" She said. "Artemis Fowl laughing out loud and having fun? What is the world coming to?"

A sheepish grin spread across his face, yet said nothing.

They both remained in their positions, still panting slightly from the descent, staring into each other's blue/hazel eyes.

In Holly's mind, she was having a sudden realization.

_Oh god, I do. _She thought. _I do love him._

And with that she did the one logical thing to do

She lowered herself closer to Artemis, and pressed her lips up against his.

Artemis immediately, had a stunned look in his eyes, and then slowly closed them.

It seems like the right thing to do in this situ…

But got no further than that, before his brain simply stopped functioning, and his heart came into action.

After a long passionate kiss, they parted.

Holly looked into Artemis' eyes and tried to see what he was thinking, but they had a blank, vague look about them, then all of a sudden, his brain came back on line, and he suddenly had a smug grin upon his face.

"My elf kissing days are over eh?" He said in a smug voice, quoting Holly.

She playfully punched him on the arm.

"That was my rational side speaking, it has no control over my soft, sensitive, companionate side."

Artemis raised his left eyebrow sceptically.

"Okay, it might not be that soft and fluffy, but there is something like that deep down somewhere inside of me, and I think it likes you"

"It would have to be one of the first" He remarked.

"Don't fret over it, I think I quite like you as well" Holly reassured him, planting another kiss on his lips.

"Hmm." He said thoughtfully. "Do the People by any chance have any laws about inter-species relationships?"

Holly laughed, and rolled onto her back, her head resting upon Artemis' chest. "I wouldn't think so, the council wouldn't approve, but there are no laws, I don't think it ever occurred to anyone that someone would consider it."

Artemis chuckled.

"It's always good to be first. Come on, Butler will be worried if we stay out here too long."

And with that, he stood up, offering a hand to Holly, completely forgetting the reason they had come close to the hill in the first place and they walked back to Fowl Manor, hand in hand.

**Just an FYI, I have absolutely no idea what knocked Holly over, I needed an excuse to be near the hill, but open to any suggestions, my imagination only goes so far.**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three.

When Holly and Artemis arrived back at the Manor, Butler had prepared an afternoon tea for them, but when the giant Eurasian manservant offered it to them, they both said that they weren't hungry, and would rather go to the study to have a chat.

"So…" Artemis began, once they had seated themselves on office chairs.

"Does this make us technically "going out"?" Holly finished for him.

"Yeah…"

"Well that all depends."

"On?"

"Do you really want to?"

There was a brief silence between them, before…

"Of course I do Holly; I love you more than anyone."

Holly smiled a radiant smile, which infected Artemis, whose lips spread out into a wide smile.

Holly drew herself closer to Artemis, and whispered in his ear. "I love you to Artemis." And kissed him lightly, but passionately.

Suddenly, the door to the study flew open to reveal a squat, very hairy man eating a colossal sized sandwich.

"Mulch!" Exclaimed Holly. "What on earth are you doing here?"

The dwarf shrugged, and plonked himself down on an office chair.

"I was just under Dublin, and I thought to myself, hey, why don't I drop in on my old friend Artemis Fowl, only to find him lip-locked once again with captain holly short."

This made Artemis remember the paradox, which had made Mulch Diggums a much older friend than previously thought.

Mulch swallowed the rest of his sandwich in one mouthful.

"So what did you two lovebirds get up to this time?" The dwarf inquired.

"We just went hiking." Answered Holly.

"Hiking eh?" Said Mulch, grinning widely.

"Don't say it." Holly warned.

"So how did you get in here anyway?" Questioned Artemis, who doubted very much that Butler would let in an uninvited guest, and then let them find their own way to Artemis, especially someone as stealing-prone as Mulch Diggums.

Mulch grinned mischievously, not a pretty sight.

"Back door was unlocked." He put simply, not fooling anyone.

"So anyway Holly." Said Artemis, not much wanting to know exactly how Mulch got in. "Before we were interrupted, I was going to ask if you would like to stay the night."

Holly smiled.

I'd love to. I'll just have to let Foaly know not to expect me back anytime soon."

And at that, she lifted herself of the chair she was on, and left the room, leaving Mulch and Artemis alone.

"So you and the captain eh?"

Artemis blushed, not something you'd normally find him doing.

"It would seem to be that way."

Mulch grinned widely, showing his tombstone teeth.

"About time too, I've had to wait almost a decade for you two to finally work it out. You have no idea how happy I am that you finally got it."

"Just how happy are you then?"

Mulch shrugged.

"You wouldn't happen to have any turkey would you?"

"Ah Holly." Said Foaly, in Holly's helmet screen. "Did you enjoy your hike?"

The centaur couldn't keep the grin off his face.

"It was just great, thank you for asking. I just called up to let you know that I'll be staying the night."

Foaly sighed. "The council isn't going to be too please. I think you might have to cut down a bit on your Mud Man visits in the future, Trouble can only persuade so far."

"Yes yes, of course." Said Holly, knowing full well that there was no chance of that happening. "It's just important that I stay tonight."

'What, did little Arty propose to you or something?"

Holly scowled.

"Okay Holly, but make sure you're back in Haven by noon."

"Of course, see you then."

"Behave yourself girl. Bye bye."

And with that, Holly switched off her LEP helmet, and went back to the study, to find Artemis looking vague, humming to himself what sounded a lot like Beethoven, and Mulch, stuffing his face with what seemed to be a whole turkey.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four.

After they had eaten dinner, Artemis showed Mulch to a specially made room for him in the cellar, for he would also be staying the night.

It was designed to accommodate a dwarf, with the walls covered by a two-foot layer of dirt, thriving with insect life, and instead of floor, there was open dirt that the dwarf could tunnel in and out at his own convenience.

"Ahh" said Mulch. "Nothing like the taste of pure Irish soil"

Artemis left the Dwarf to enjoy his new room in peace, and went to check on Holly.

When he walked into her room, she was lying on her front, on her oversized bed, writing in a small green book, which she tossed ungracefully under the bed as soon as he walked in.

"What was…?

"Nothing." She answered, rather hurriedly.

They both stared at each other for a moment, before Artemis backed out the door, and closed it behind him, with a confused look on his face.

Holly was writing in her diary, which she had done faithfully every day for the past few decades.

It was a bit childish, she knew, to keep a diary on her deep down feelings and such, but it was a present from her mother, when she was little.

No one was actually aware that Holly kept a diary, and she didn't much feel like revealing it to anyone wen Artemis walked into the room.

She let out a small gasp, and quickly tossed it away.

"What was..?" He began.

"Nothing." She said, before he could finish, slightly embarrassed about the things she had been writing in it.

New boyfriend or not, she wasn't going to let Artemis know what she felt deep down.

Artemis backed out of the room, looking quite puzzled.

When the door was closed again, she let out a sigh, and retrieved the small book from under the bed.

It was past eleven o'clock, and the manor was silent, when there was a creak at Artemis' door.

He sat bolt upright to see a small figure standing in the doorway.

"Mind if I sleep with you?" Holly said nervously.

The dark couldn't hide Artemis' smile. The boy had been smiling an awful lot recently.

"Not at all." He replied, pulling the covers back, as the elf crawled into his huge bed.

Holly turned to face him, and Artemis placed his hand lightly on her small cheek.

'I love you Holly."

"I love you too Artemis."

She put her arms around his neck, and drew herself in.

The kiss was soft and light at first, but then got more and more intimate.

Holly ran her hands through his soft, raven black hair, and he wrapped his arms around her waist, bringing her closer still, until she could feel his strong heart beat on her chest.

After what felt like a lifetime, they drew apart.

'You're getting quite good at this you know." Holly remarked.

Artemis grinned. "You're not too bad yourself." He said, giving her a light kiss on the neck.

Their lips met once more, less passionate, but just as wonderful.

When they broke apart, Holly said "We should probably get some sleep sometime soon."

Holly turned back over, and Artemis put his arms around her once again.

His warmth and closeness felt good to Holly, and eventually, the rhythmic beating of his heart on her back sent her into a deep sleep.

Butler was walking hurriedly down the hallway, in the early hours of the morning.

He was worried, for when he had gone to check Holly's room; he had found the bed empty was empty.

When he reached Artemis' room at the end of the hallway, he entered without knocking.

"Artemis, Holly is…"

He stopped there when he saw his missing elf asleep in his master's arms.

Butler was smiling when he walked back out of the bedroom.

_About time too._

The End


End file.
